Asparagus cooks very quickly on the barbecue, and green or purple asparagus is great served alongside anything else being barbecued. The spears can also be cooked on a chargrill pan on the stovetop to achieve a similar effect. Serve your barbecued asparagus on a heated plate, as it will cool down quite quickly. You can heat plates in the oven, in a sink of hot water, or in a microwave oven for a minute.

I give small quantities of butter as a tablespoon measurement in this book when an exact amount is not essential. It’s useful to know that a tablespoon of butter is about 20 g – test how close your scoop is by weighing it. It’s important to learn to ‘measure’ with your eyes as well as the scales as you develop your cooking skills.

Dip a pastry brush in the oil and ‘paint’ each asparagus spear very lightly. Rest the spears on a plate.

Heat a barbecue or chargrill pan to medium heat. Melt the butter in a small saucepan and add the soy sauce. Keep this warm while you cook the asparagus.

Grill the spears, turning after 3 minutes. Cook for another 1–2 minutes. The spears should be well marked from the grill and crisp-tender. Transfer the cooked asparagus to a warmed serving plate and drizzle with the buttery sauce. Grind over a little pepper. (There is no need to add salt as the soy sauce is already salty.) Serve immediately.

Reproduced from The Cook’s Apprentice (Penguin/Lantern, 2018) with permission from Stephanie Alexander. Signed copies can be purchased via www.kitchengardenfoundation.org.au/shopYou can follow Stephanie’s adventures in food on Instagram @growcookeat